[Community acquired infections with methicillin resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus: report of five cases].
Community acquired infections with methicillin resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections have a more aggressive clinical course and involve mostly skin and lungs. These infections appear as outbreaks among prisoners, sportsmen, men having sex with men and military personnel. The higher aggressiveness of these strains is due to the production of several toxins, mainly Panton- Valentine leukocidine. The detection of the gene that codes for this toxin is a distinctive feature of these strains. We report five patients with community acquired MRSA infections. The clinical presentation was a skin infection in all. One patient had a pleuropneumonia in addition. Apart for resistance to beta-lactam antimicrobials, the strains were resistant to erythromycin and ciprofloxacin. Patients were treated with vancomycin, clotrimoxazole or intravenous clindamycin with a good evolution. An epidemiological surveillance for community acquired MRSA strain infections should be started and measures to adequately treat infected patients and avoid dissemination should be implemented.
Noriega
Luis Miguel
LM
Unidad de Infectología y Departamento de Medicina, Clínica Alemana, Santiago, Chile. lnoriega@alemana.cl
González
Patricia
P
Hormazábal
Juan Carlos
JC
Pinto
Consuelo
C
Canals
Magdalena
M
Munita
José Manuel
JM
Thompson
Luis
L
Marcotti
Alejandra
A
Pérez
Jorge
J
Ibáñez
Daniel
D
Araya
Pamela
P
Canals
Claudio
C
Vial
Pablo
P
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002677:Chile; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016106:Methicillin Resistance / Q000235:genetics; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013207:Staphylococcal Skin Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology*; D014195:Travel; D055815:Young Adult
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents